Join MasterVoices on April 17th for this gorgeous opera, featuring new revisions and a compelling cast that brings this enduring tale to life. With an ensemble this large we’ll be showcasing the artists in two parts.
Kyle Oliver
Tom Joad
Recently released from prison on parole, Tom returns home to find his family’s livelihood decimated by drought and foreclosure.
Look for his hopeful Act I performance in “I Keep My Nose Clean” and “Plenty Road.” And his Act II duet “I’ll Be There” with Margaret Lattimore.
Noted Performances:
Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers with Sarasota Opera; Junius in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia with Loft Opera; Fiorello in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia at Lincoln Center; Blind Injustice with Peak Performances at Montclair State University
Margaret Lattimore
Ma
The backbone of the Joad Family, Ma is resolute that her family will not be broken despite the hardships they face.
Look for her heartbreaking aria “Simple Child” in Act II with Christen Pursell, playing Ma’s son Noah.
Noted Performances:
Metropolitan Opera for Les contes d’Hoffmann, The Exterminating Angel, The Merry Widow, Romeo et Juliette and most recently Iolanta. Mrs. De Rocher in Dead Man Walking with Opera on the Avalon; Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with Pacific Symphony; Harbison’s: Mottetti Di Montale; (Grammy nomination)
Nathan Gunn
Pa
Patriarch of the family, spearheading the move west to California.
Fun Fact: Nathan Gunn sang the role of Tom Joad in our 2010 performance of The Grapes of Wrath, and now returns to play Pa.
Noted Performances:
Papageno in The Magic Flute in the very first Met in HD broadcast, Grammy Award winner for Best Opera Recording for Billy Budd, and the Metropolitan Opera’s first ever Beverly Sills Award winner; noted performances with the New York Philharmonic in Carousel and Camelot.
MV Performances: The Firebrand of Florence, The Grapes of Wrath
Mikaela Bennett
Rose of Sharon
Tom’s Eldest Sister. Pregnant and newly married to Connie Rivers. She has many big dreams for their life in California.
Look for her Act II Finale aria, “One Star.” Cue the tissues.
Noted Performances:
Recent recipient of the Lincoln Center Award for Emerging Artists; Maria in The Sound of Music at Lyric Opera of Kansas City; Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls at Opera Saratoga
Recent MV performances: Our America, Handel’s Israel in Egypt, The Gershwins’ Let ‘Em Eat Cake, A Joyful Noise, Bizet’s Carmen
Schyler Vargas
Connie Rivers / Ragged Man / Truck Driver
Connie is newly married to Rose of Sharon. He shares the same dreams for a prosperous life in California, but realities crush his dreams and commitment.
Look for Vargas also playing a Truck Driver and the Ragged Man who warns the Joad Family that California isn’t the promise they believe it to be in “I Can’t Tell You.”
Noted Performances:
Gabe Valentine / Eisenstein in The Bat’s Revenge/Die Fledermaus with Pacific Opera Project; Glimmerglass Festival in Elizabeth Cree as Inspector Kildare and La Calisto as Mercurio; Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Wolf/Cinderella’s Prince in Into the Woods at Holy City Arts & Lyric Opera Recent MV performances: Gilbert and Sullivan’s Iolanthe
